Everyone Else Can See It
by By My Pen
Summary: Alanna and Gary discuss something they have noticed brewing between Numair and his student after the rat omen from the gods in Carthak.
1. Alanna and Gary

"Gary," Alanna whispered from the doorway of her room. Gary had been making his way to his own room after a very eventful dinner in which rats had burst from Varice Kingsford's cake in the style of an undeniable omen from the gods. When Alanna called to him, he knew she must want to discuss it so after looking up and down the corridor, he discreetly entered her room. Once she had shut the door behind him, the corners of the room filled with purple fire.

"Well," she began, "that was possibly the most eventful meal I've ever had. It's a wonder I'm not suffering some kind of indigestion.."

"Mm," Gary affirmed, "if Ozorne doesn't start paying attention to these omens, he's going to drive his country into the ground – what with the added threat of war and all. Although that could work to our advantage, I wouldn't wish it upon any country."

Alanna looked thoughtful. "Yes the omens and oncoming war are all very well and will become immediately important to me in just a moment. But there's something I have to share first," she gazed at the wall behind Gary, eyes unfocused, "I have to know I wasn't the only one to see it."

Gary raised his eyebrows at her. It wasn't like Alanna to put off matters of war and the gods. He wondered was was causing her to stray so. She still looked thoughtful as she wandered over to a chair and sat on it. Deciding she needed prompting, Gary spoke. "See what?"

"Daine..." she trailed off.

"Sent the rats back? Yes I saw that. Very impressive feat, though not uncommon for her. What of it?" Gary was really very confused by now.

"No it's not that. I can't believe I didn't see it before! I guess I just assumed it was Numair's protective nature for Daine..." she still seemed to be miles away. Gary caught on.

"Oh, _that_," he replied, "do you mean the way he vaulted a table just to see to Daine's safety after she had merely been bitten?"

Alanna looked up at him sharply. "So you _did_ see it? It's not just me?"

Gary chuckled. "Oh, no. I have definitely noticed something brewing there."

"He almost completely ignored Varice!" Alanna said incredulously, "his young student over his first love? That is really making a statement...without him seemingly meaning to as well..."

"What do you mean?" Gary frowned, "surely they couldn't expect us not to notice?"

"Oh but that's just it, I don't think _they_ haveeven noticed it yet."

"Are you telling me that Numair – _Numair_ – doesn't recognise his own feelings for a woman?" Now Gary was incredulous. Everyone knew of Numair's reputation with women.

Alanna wrinkled her nose at him. "Just because he beds women, doesn't mean he loves each one to the extent he obviously loves Daine. I guess the fact that they haven't recognised it yet means that it really _is _love, of sorts. It means nothing physical has occurred to either of them yet..."

Gary suddenly realised something. "Oh dear," he murmured.

"I know," Alanna replied, having already thought of what he meant.

"This could be _really _bad timing...I _told_ Jon it could dangerous throwing Numair and Daine into this situation – Numair's so protective of her already, _and_ he has a history with the place."

"I mentioned something similar to him," Alanna nibbled her thumb thoughtfully, "but he just said 'to send one, you have to send the other and we need both'. I guess he's right." Alanna sighed then looked up brightly at Gary. "Politics aside though – it'll be fun to watch. I don't know if I have the patience to lie in wait for the day they come to realise it."

Gary laughed outright. "Oh please, gods willing, let me be there for the day they decide to tell us. As if we didn't already know!"

Alanna joined him in his laughter and the pair laughed over it for a long while, enjoy a rare peaceful moment in their lives of tumult and stress.


	2. Thayet

**A/N: **Ok had this idea, don't know if you'll like it but it's worth a try. I think Thayet's diplomacy and natural leadership make her an excellent queen and I just thought I'd use this to show a bit of that as well as getting Numair over his ridiculous ideas of his and Daine's relationship. I know, dear reviewer davies-claire, that this isn't what you had in mind but your suggestion gave me this idea as well. I just thought I'd do it chronologically. What you suggested is still coming! Lemme know what you think.

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><p>Thayet looked up from her own personal preparations to observe those of the attacking force she had assembled that would tomorrow sail out to aid their king and his army at Port Legann. From where she was standing on the land end of the wharf, she could see Stormwings aiding humans to load the boats; members of the Own and the Queen's Riders pacing the camp to hide any sign of their presence; mages sitting in huddles to discuss their own plans; two lovers saying goodbye...<p>

Thayet's wandering eyes halted and flicked back. Lovers saying goodbye? That wasn't right was it? The only person leaving today was Daine..._Daine?_ No, Thayet thought, I must be mistaken. But sure enough, when she looked properly she could see Daine clearly by the dying light as she looked up into the face of none other than her teacher and friend, Numair Samalin. They were standing where she had left Daine and Rikash Moonsword only moments before, giving the girl the Dominion Jewel for the king.

Thayet blinked. Daine and Numair? How had she missed that? I suppose I could have missed it, she thought wryly, they neither of them ever needed help with matchmaking so I never made it my affair...

And here they were, wrapped in each other's arms, undeniably in a more than platonic manner. Thayet wandered closer as the dragon Diamondflame came to hurry them along. Doing away with any doubts Thayet may have had before this moment – of which there were very little, if any – the pair kissed before Daine climbed onto the dragon's back.

Waiting until girl and dragon had flown away, Thayet stepped forward lightly and coughed, a smile across her face. Numair spun, caught by surprise.

"Thayet, I– I didn't see you there," he stumbled over his words. Then he noticed Thayet's smile, which was quickly turning into a smirk, and grimaced. "How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough. Have you been keeping secrets from your queen, Master Samalin?" her tone was as light as her smile, "how long has this been going on for then?"

Numair sighed. Covering his face with a hand, he explained what had happened in the divine realms in a muffled and abashed tone. "I know it's wrong of me to take advantage, I shouldn't have let it happen-" Thayet cut him off.

" 'Take advantage'?," she looked incredulous, "Numair, if you hadn't noticed, our Daine isn't one to be taken advantage of easily. And though black robed mage you may be, you would never have the arrogance to do such a thing." Numair looked at her, surprised.

"Surely just our age differences in this situation – and my previous experience in such areas and Daine's lack of such experience – should indicate taking advantage? And..." Thayet let Numair babble some more ridiculous reasons before cutting him off again, rolling her eyes.

"Numair, I think you're over-analysing this a little, don't you?" Numair still looked baffled so she continued, "can't you just let yourself enjoy it? Without your mind popping in little cynical comments every five seconds?" she sighed when he made a face, trying to decide how best to put his fears aside. Then a thought occurred to her. "Come with me, Numair," she said, then led him down to the end of the wharf. Sailors, Riders, Own and foot soldiers alike called greetings and bowed to their monarch as they passed – all of them respected and liked a queen who would fight on the ground amongst them. When they reached the end of the wharf, Thayet stopped and pointed to where the stormwings were helping load the boats.

"You see that, Numair? There are humans and stormwings working in unison. No-one thought it would ever happen but, thanks to your Daine, it has. And now, when you think about it, it makes perfect sense," she turned to face him, "Ozorne is now a stormwing, able to wield their magic. So it makes sense for us to ally with his enemy stormwings," she gestured to the stormwings in the air, "The stormwings can't defeat him on their own because their number is less that his and Ozorne has the God of Chaos aiding them. So it makes sense for the stormwings to ally themselves with us," she looked up into his face, high above hers, and could see her words were taking effect, "you and Daine mightn't have been greatly expected, certainly not by me, but now it has happened, it makes sense. You need her, she needs you. Simple." Thayet could see her words had worked. Numair gripped her hand as he might a male companion and thanked her.

"My queen, it's moments like these that I know why I serve under you and his majesty," his tone was mocking but there was a seriousness to it as he smiled, "I do believe you've helped me greatly make up my mind about the whole thing."

"Good," Thayet smiled warmly back, "what are you going to tell her when you see her again?"

Numair grinned mischievously. "Well provided she doesn't get herself killed, I do believe I shall ask her to marry me, your majesty," he began to walk backwards towards the camp, still facing his queen as he talked, "but we may just have to skip that part and I'll have to whisk her away to the nearest bed!"

"_That _I did _not_ need to know, mage!" she called after him, laughing. He gave her a mock salute coupled with another wicked grin then turned and walked down the wharf to land, hands in pockets and whistling cheerfully. Good, Thayet thought with some satisfaction, at least someone's happy, if only for a short while. She wandered over to the wharf's railing, placed her elbows on it and rested her chin on her hands, pondering a great many things.

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><p>The morning after the Immortals war was won, Thayet set about preparations for a celebratory and commemorative feast. On her way to the kitchens, she stopped by the room Daine had been given whilst at Port Legann. The Wildmage had still not awoken and Numair was assumed to be sleeping, although no-one knew where. Thayet had a sneaking suspicion as to where he might be discovered. Opening the door quietly, she peeked through into the room lit by the morning light alone. She smiled at what she found there and left the room just as quietly as she had entered. As the door closed, Numair Samalin reached out an arm in his sleep to his young love and pulled her closer to him. When they awoke, there would be many questions to answer and reports to give, but for now Thayet left them to their few moments of peace.<p> 


	3. Everyone

**A/N:** Ok, now everyone else finds out, with Gary and Alanna present. I have to admit that I took some liberties with who else might be present at the final battle but I know that Duke Gareth and Buri were back in Corus, so I have unfortunately had to leave them out of it. Nevertheless - enjoy!

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><p>Jonathan may have been perceived as being a very kind king for putting off the meetings that were inevitable in the aftermath of war for a few days, but the truth of the matter was that he was simply tired. Knowing no-one would make any fuss, he avoided mentioning it and forgot about being a king for two days. If anyone noticed the real reasoning behind his reluctance, they didn't mention it. They were all too tired. The only action put into place was that of retrieving the bodies of their soldiers from the battlefield and sending them back to loved ones. The morning after Thayet's commemorative feast, however, the king ashamedly conceded with himself that clean-up must begin now – indeed, that it should have already. He started with a meeting with his closest advisors that were present at Port Legann. This meeting included himself and his wife, the Lioness, Lord Raoul, Sir Myles, Gareth the Younger, Lord Imrah, Daine the Wildmage and Numair Samalin. He sent them all messengers telling them to meet in the fort's largest library at noon. Now they had to get down to the serious matters.<p>

Numair and Daine were in Daine's rooms when the messenger came to relay the king's request. Numair got up from the room's small desk and sighed.

"C'mon, Magelet," he held out a hand to Daine, who was sprawled on the bed, "it's almost noon and there's something I want to look for in the library before the meeting starts." Daine took his hand and allowed him to pull her up to stand beside him. She ended up quite close to him and despite their best intentions to leave immediately, they couldn't help but kiss and hold one another for a while. Daine broke away first, smiling.

"As much as I'd like to stay here like this all day, I believe there was a meeting we were called to?" she reprimanded.

"Mm?" replied Numair, leaning back down to her lips again, "meeting...? what meeting?" This time when Daine pulled away, she skipped out of Numair's reach to the door.

"Yes, Numair. _Important_ meeting, remember?"

Numair growled slightly, making Daine shiver, even from across the room. She kept her face as innocent as daises, however, as Numair demanded she come back to him, _right now_.

"No," she declared, and raced out the door. The library was not far from her rooms, which was lucky; she and Numair had spent more time than they had thought at their antics and would have consequently been running late if they were any father away. For the sake of getting to the meeting on time, Daine hoped Numair had followed her as she jogged down the hall. It turned out he was closer than she thought because just before she reached the door, he grabbed her around the waist and spun her to face him.

"Hey," he said in a low voice that nearly made her knees give way, "I haven't finished with you yet."

Daine fought to keep her face straight as she continued her teasing. "Well I'm finished with you, so go away." This was all it took for Numair. He pushed her up against the library door noisily and began his passionate attentions to her, neither of them heeding the open corridor they stood in. That is, until a sound somewhere between a cough and a laugh sounded behind them. Startled, the couple broke apart and turned to look for the source of the noise.

Standing there was the entire meeting party and several servants holding platters of food and trays of pitchers and cups. The servants were fighting hard to keep their faces straight while Thayet rolled her eyes at the pair and gave Numair a pointed look that quite clearly said _Really? Here?_ The king seemed to be having quite as hard a time controlling his face as the servants; the emotions displayed across his face ranged from surprise to amusement and back again. Lord Imrah, Lord Raoul and Sir Myles were smiling broadly.

And in front of them all stood Gary and Alanna. The king's champion had a hand over her mouth, try to suppress the laughter that caused her shoulders to shake and the corners of her eyes to crinkle. Gary had his lips clamped shut and was obviously trying just as hard not to laugh as the Lioness. Daine and Numair looked around them all and then at each other. Daine gave Numair a slight smile then turned back to their audience.

"Erm...surprise!" she said in a slightly unsure tone.

That was it for Alanna and Gary. They burst into fits of unconstrained laughter, crying and clutching their bellies with the effort. Everyone looked at them for a moment, confused as to the magnitude of their reaction. Then Gary gained control of himself just enough to say to Alanna, "you, Sir Knight, owe me ten gold nobles!"

Numair clicked first. "You- you _knew_?"

"We guessed," Alanna replied, wiping her eyes, "a long time ago – before you even knew, I reckon."

"Yes," Gary added, "and then we made bets. C'mon, pay up!"

"Well they didn't technically _tell _us..." the memory of what they had encountered only moments ago sent them into fresh fits of laughter. Raoul was now struggling with his own laughter.

It was the king's turn to cough now. "Yes, well, this is all very..._enlightening_" this brought on new laughter, including a snigger from Raoul, "but may I suggest we move it inside, before the entire of Tortall finds out?"

Daine made a face as they moved into the library. "Fat chance of avoiding that now," she said looking at the servants then she looked pointedly at Numair. He put on a mock-offended look.

"Are you suggesting this is _my _fault?"

"Yes, Numair, you were the one who chased me down the hall." This earned fresh bouts of laughter from all three knights now.

"And you are completely blameless for that, are you?" Numair retorted in a low, teasing voice. Daine's lack of response and sheepish look stunned the laughter into silence as the whole room, servants included, turned to look at the previously assumed innocent Daine. She looked around at them all indignantly.

"Well, we were going to be late."

It took a while for the laughter to subside for the meeting to begin.


End file.
